I Will Die For You
by PerfectNPlastic
Summary: A story of love, pain, hope, and tragedy featuring Sephiroth and Aeris. This story features the couple in need to make quick decisions before they depart from the City of the Ancients. Is this true love? Does Aeris -really- die? Find out.


"I Will Die for You."

DISCLAIMER: Obviously, I don't own Final Fantasy VII. Sad, but true.

Cloud was brushing his teeth as Aeris flew into the bathroom.

"Cloud, would you hurry it up? I'm going to be la- I mean... I'm tired! Yes, I'm tired. We've had such a long journey today, and I want to get some rest." Aeris forced lies from her mouth, trying to hurry Cloud into his bed. She swiftly turned around, her chestnut hair following her, and glanced at a small clock on the nightstand next to her bed.

Won't Cloud hurry it up? He is not going to be extremely thrilled if I'm late! Aeris thought to herself.

Cloud spit the toothpaste from his mouth and turned to Aeris.

"Ok, OK! I'm done!" Cloud walked past Aeris with a bit of speed, and hopped right into his bed. Aeris gave a sigh of relief and followed directly behind Cloud. She nudged Cloud in the shoulder playfully as he lay there silently, signaling him to move over a bit. He groaned at her, and rolled over. Aeris carefully slid into the bed, attempting not to stir Cloud, and closed her eyes.

A few minutes later, Aeris lifted her head up and turned to Cloud. He was sound asleep. She cautiously removed her covers and crawled out of bed. She stripped herself of her nightgown, revealing her usual rosy pink dress. Aeris tiptoed to her pile of necessities, and picked up her tiny red jacket. Her sweet smelling basket of flowers was next to the nightstand, and Aeris slowly crept to the nightstand to retrieve them. As she bent down to pick them up, Cloud let out a loud snore. It startled Aeris and caused her to drop her basket of flowers. She giggled as she glanced at Cloud sleeping. She stood up next to him and caressed his cheek. Aeris moved her lips close to his ear.

"Don't worry about me, Cloud. I'll come back when it's all over." Aeris whispered and kissed him softly on the cheek. She returned to collecting her flowers, and looked at the clock in front of her.

My Gods, I only have 10 minutes! I pray that I'm not late, for I do not want to upset him. Aeris pondered. She quickly gathered her flowers and exited the room. Aeris continued down the stairs of the petite inn until she reached the lobby. It was pitch black, and there was so sound with the exception of Aeris' pounding heart. She crept to the door and rushed outside, nearly forgetting to shut it. She crossed her arms and breathed in the ice-cold air. Her lungs burned as the cold air filled them. She began to tread through the snow-covered path, in search of her love. Aeris quickly began her journey through the Sleeping Forest to reach the Temple of the Ancients.

Aeris had been treading for nearly ten minutes, and she had almost reached the temple. Only a few steps away from exiting the forest, she saw a nearby flower among all of the dead trees. She bent down and smiled. Aeris slowly picked the flower, but was startled when a voice called her.

"Aeris?" a sharp voice said.

Aeris turned to see a beautifully crafted platform with spiral stairs leading up to it. At the top of the circular platform was a man dressed in black. His silver hair blew behind him, and as he turned towards Aeris she could almost see his piercing green eyes. Aeris put the tiny flower into her flower basket and stood up. Aeris jumped up and down waving, then ran towards the platform. As she was running, she tripped over the buckled concrete walk. Aeris fell into the snow, and her basket of flowers flew out of her hand. As she lay in the snow, she began to shake. Her flowers were spilled everywhere, and her body was numb. The man with silver hair jumped off the side of the platform, and landed in the snow without flaw. He ran towards the shivering flower girl, and pulled her out of the snow and into his arms.

"My dear, where have you been? I've been waiting for you. Oh, my sweet, your body is so cold." the man said as he held her in his arms.

"I-I'm sorry, my love. I t-t-tried to come here as fast as I could." Aeris' shaky voice said. "I hope I haven't upset you, Sephiroth." she cried.

"My poor, sweet Aeris. Do not fret- the time does not matter. All I want is you here, with me." Sephiroth opened his cloak and pulled her into it. Her arms immediately wrapped around him, and Sephiroth could feel her pounding heart and cold skin on his flesh. He smiled and turned her around.

"Aeris, come with me. I'd love for you to see this." the man laughed and walked side by side with the shivering flower girl. He took her small hand in his and walked with her to the first step of the platform's ascent. As he began to climb the stairs, Aeris tripped over the very first step. He caught her in his arms, and picked her up to make the trip quicker. He carried Aeris to the top of the stairs, and put her back down on her two feet. She let go of his hand and escaped his cloak. Aeris was fascinated by the view from the shimmering platform. Aeris, still astounded, walked towards the edge of the platform and lightly placed her hands on the railing. She looked out onto the scintillating lake and smiled.

"How amazing. It's lovely here, Sephiroth." Aeris stared into the lake. Sephiroth came up behind her and kissed her neck playfully. Aeris giggled and turned to him. She wrapped her arms around him and softly kissed his lips.

"Sephiroth..." Aeris whispered, her tone seeming a bit distressed.

"Yes, the love of my life?" Sephiroth smiled at her, staring into Aeris' twinkling eyes.

Aeris burst into tears and threw herself at him. She held him close and squeezed him.

"My dear, what is the matter?" Sephiroth played with her hair as she cried in his arms.

"I..." Aeris' voice trembled as she spoke. "I can't do this anymore! I never see you, Cloud won't stop flirting with me, and my friends are on a journey to DESTROY you! I just can't hold myself together anymore, I'm torn in pieces!" Aeris shrieked and threw herself at the ground below Sephiroth.

"A-Aeris..." Sephiroth whispered. "Look at me."

Aeris continued to sob, her face in her hands.

"LOOK AT ME, AERIS GAINSBOROUGH!" Sephiroth kicked Aeris. She let out a silent cry and removed her hands from her face. Aeris looked up at Sephiroth to see a single tear forming in his right eye.

"You... how could you? How could you even THINK of doing this to me, Aeris? I thought I could trust you! I thought I meant more to you! I guess all the love in the world isn't enough to please you, is it?" Sephiroth screamed at Aeris as she stared into his Mako eyes.

"NO MORE will I see you, Aeris! NO MORE!" Sephiroth lifted up his right arm and smacked Aeris across the face. She fell to the ground, clasping her cheek. Aeris moved her hands from her cheek, revealing four bloody marks on her face. She looked at her hand to see bits of blood and Aeris looked up at Sephiroth. His eyes were widened as he looked at his hand. His glove had four small studs lined on his fingertips. Sephiroth allowed a single tear to stream down his cheek. Sephiroth threw himself to the ground, and placed Aeris' head on his lap.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Aeris, I love you! I love you more than life itself! Please, please forgive me! Gods, how could I have done this to you? Why have I let my anger get the best of me! Aeris, please say something, anything!" Sephiroth kissed Aeris' bloody cheek over and over.

"Sephiroth... I love you." Aeris whispered.

"What was that, my sweet?" Sephiroth wished to hear those amazing words again.

"Sephiroth, I love you. I can't leave you, I love you too much! I'll do anything for you! I'll move a mountain for you! I'll walk across water for you! Sephiroth... I will die for you." Aeris said as she sat up next to him. Sephiroth smiled and swung his arms around her.

"I'm glad you feel the way I do, Aeris. We'll always be together, forever." Sephiroth kissed her forehead. Aeris stood up and looked at Sephiroth below her.

"Sephiroth... would you come over here, please?" Aeris walked to the center of the platform and got on her knees, facing the beautiful lake. Sephiroth stood up, walked to her, and sat on his knees next to her.

"What are we doing, Aeris?" Sephiroth questioned her.

"Do this, Sephiroth. Pray with me. Pray that we'll always be together. Pray that nothing will separate us. Pray that we live through everything happening and we get married, Sephiroth! Pray with me, please?" Aeris begged.

Pray... what does the flower girl mean by this? I... I've never heard this word in my life. I suppose I'll just follow her. Sephiroth wondered to himself.

Aeris clasped her hands together and closed her eyes. She lowered her head in deep prayer. Sephiroth followed her, not knowing what he was doing.

I... I pray that Aeris will be my angel forever and always, no matter what. I hope I'm doing this right...

"Come on, Tifa! It's not THAT cold!" a voice in the distance said.

"Cloud... I can feel it, he's coming. Aeris, stand up! Cloud is coming!" Sephiroth nudged Aeris.

Aeris looked up at Sephiroth, and he helped her stand up. As Sephiroth took Aeris' hand and began to run towards the edge of the platform, Aeris pulled her hand away.

"Sephiroth, I have to stay here and pray! For the Ancients, for the planet, for us. You just... just go without me! I promise we'll met again, my love! I'll love you forever, please... stay safe!" Aeris pulled Sephiroth close to her and kissed his lips. This time, the kiss was more passionate and loving. As they both heard footsteps coming from the stairs, they finished their embrace and looked towards the stairs. Cloud was ascending the stairs, and just as Aeris and Cloud's eyes met, Sephiroth jumped off the platform into the lake. Aeris threw herself to the ground and locked herself in prayer.

Please, Sephiroth. Please come find me. I pray I'll meet you again, and I pray that our love will live on.

Just then, Cloud looked up at the sky to see Sephiroth descending with his Masamune directed at Aeris! Aeris looked up as she noticed Cloud's face in distress, and she saw Sephiroth coming at her.

"SEPHIROTH, WHAT are you DOING?" Aeris screamed at him.

"Please, Aeris, this is the best for us! This way, we can be together! You'll always be my angel!" Sephiroth replied back. Somehow, Cloud did not hear any of this.

"Okay, Sephiroth! I trust you, and I lo-"

Sephiroth had plunged his Masamune into Aeris' back. Her hands immediately dropped to her side and the expression on her face did not change. Aeris' expression was blank, and she lost all feeling, causing her to hunch over. Sephiroth bit his lip to assure he didn't cry as he carefully slid the Masamune out of the dead flower girl's back. Aeris collapsed forward and her pink bow and white materia flew off of her head. As her body lay lifelessly on the floor, her white materia bounced down the stairs, and landed in the lake. Sephiroth looked up at Cloud, acting as though he has triumphed. Sephiroth took one final look at Aeris, and jumped off of the platform into the lake. From there, Sephiroth swam to the shore and hid in the Sleeping Forest, watching. From afar, Sephiroth saw Cloud's frustrated reaction.. Cloud then lifted up Aeris and walked down the stairs from the platform. He then slowly began to walk into the lake Aeris once called "scintillating", and began to lower her into the water. Sephiroth rustled in the trees and screamed.

"NO!" Sephiroth shrieked, then covered his mouth and hid himself. Cloud turned around , looked a bit, and continued to lower Aeris into her watery grave. Eventually, he let go of her lifeless body and watched her float to the very depths of the lake. Cloud shook his head as him and his party left to return to the inn. Sephiroth slowly emerged from the forest, trying to hold back his tears. He ran to where Cloud lowered Aeris, and dove into the water. Sephiroth swam to the depths of the lake, and retrieved Aeris' body. His heart was so cold, the freezing water didn't even bother him. He swam with Aeris to the shore of the lake, and dragged her body onto it. Her expression was just as when he killed her- blank. Sephiroth cried a single tear, and it dripped onto her face. He wiped his tear from her face and caressed her cheek. Sephiroth leaned down and softly kissed her on the lips. When he looked at his love again, the expression on her face seemed to have changed. A soft, sweet Aeris smile had come across her face. Sephiroth stood above Aeris and picked her up. He carried her like a child would carry their favorite doll.

"Aeris, I love you forever and always. We will always be together. Forever." Sephiroth whispered.

Sephiroth silently cried as he vanished with Aeris into the Sleeping Forest.

- Written by: Sarah/PerfectNPlastic/PrincessGarnet - Date: 11 - 14 -04 


End file.
